Reasons SMEs face difficulties recruiting staff, by occupation and size category, EU, 2023 (% of SMEs)

This report provides updated evidence on the persistence of labour shortages amid declining levels of labour market slack in the EU and at Member State level. This serves as a background to the main focus of the report, which is on organisational policies aimed at attracting workers to occupations in which shortages are common. Case studies were conducted across sectors and Member States to gain an insight into how organisations deal with recruitment and retention challenges in a tight labour market. The report offers lessons on steps employers can take to fill vacancies, whether acting alone or in partnership with other organisations. It builds on previous Eurofound research that developed a taxonomy of actions employers adopt aimed at addressing labour shortages.